I fell in love the moment I
laid eyes upon you – Tall, dark and handsome! I could hardly pass a day without
thinking about you. I had to see you!!
The day to leave finally came;
I couldn’t be bothered to pack. Grabbed what I could, chucked them into my
rucksack and was off!! I was going to be on my own throughout this trip and
staying with people I’ve never met. That itself was an adventure for me!
It took me about four hours to
reach Colombo City, another two and a half hours drive to Kegalle, my intended
location. Along the way, many thoughts filled my head: “ What are you really
like? Will you like me? Most of all…will I have a chance to love you with all
my heart?” It was a first for me; and I
was bent on making an impression!
Finally, I arrived at my
destination. I was extremely tired from the journey. Nevertheless, my spirit
remained undeterred. I made my introductions with every member of the family.
But where was my man???
All of a sudden, I heard a
sound by the window. And there he was…. God!!! He was everything I imagined
him, but even better in real life. He was magnificent! Oh and that trunk…simply
adorable. It was calling to me for a great big hug! Yes, Raja was none other
than an Elephant!
He was no ordinary Elephant
though. He was a member of the “Elephant Freedom Project!” And I was going to
spend the next few days with him. How exciting!!!
Elephant Freedom Project (EFP)
Who are the people behind it?
Two Dutch brothers, with the
support of a Sri Lankan family, are involved in this project:
EFP Members:
1) JR & Tim Beltman
2) Ananda Household:
- Mr. Ananda,
- Mali (his beautiful wife),
- Shashini (their 13th
year old daughter),
- Ammah (Mali’s mum),
- Devika (Great Indian Cook)
- Bilky (their pet dog).
- Tina (Tim’s Dog Freedom
Project)
- Gayan, Coordinator
- Gunarathna & Chirantha
(Trainee), Elephant Mahouts.
- And of course our Main Star, Raja.
What is it?
Simply put, it’s a sanctuary
for Elephants; to rest & relax and be free from abuse and all work
including riding.
Why?
Ultimately educate and create
awareness among the people of Sri Lanka that Elephants are meant to be FREE.
FREE from Abuse, Chains, Work
and Riding.
EFP struggles are real. They
strive to do the right thing, even when everybody else isn’t. That to me is
commendable!
Want to know more?
Check out their website and speak
with JR or Tim Beltman.
Tim mostly, cause he’s living
in Sri Lanka.
It’s really his story to tell
not mine; and he will do a fantastic job in answering all your questions.
I’m here to speak about
my experience with Raja & EFP. So let me do just that…J
On my first day of arrival, I did nothing but rest and mingle with The Ananda household. Besides,
what’s the rush, I had all the time in the world. I learned from Mr. Ananda that Devika speaks
Tamil. So imagine her joy when I spoke Tamil the whole time with her.
When not with Raja, I spent time
with the Ananda household. Rummy-O Sessions with Shashini were the best and I
miss it! Tim also popped by the house a lot and I got to speak with him
extensively about the project.
Days with Raja
My sweet giant had two walks and one bath daily. Before every walk, a safety briefing with Gayan is important. He covers all that’s essential to know when out with Raja. His walks aren’t short. So be
prepared to walk! We take different routes each time and their view was just scenic.
During his walks, Raja has
his chains on. Not only that, the mahouts had to bring along bull hooks. Rest
assured, they were never once used on him. The chains and bullhooks are for
safety and security reasons. There’s a need for them to be shown in public.
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| Grazing :) |
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| Scratching Post |
EFP’s key aim is to gradually move away
from using chains and bull hooks.
For that to happen, it takes
time and loads of patience to educate the people to change from their old ways.
They are pretty steady in managing this aspect. Much thought has been put
into this matter and they know exactly what they are doing!
Discoveries
His favorite food were bananas,
bamboos, tiger palm leaves and so much more. Watching him eat was a fascinating
sight. He would dust the sand from the leaves on his legs; stamp off the muddy
roots and just eat the green portions.
What I admired the most - his
technique and strength to walk up and down steep hills. This 50 year old is not
to be messed with!
Cleaning his enclosure was a
joy. There were plenty of mud puddles left by the rain. Imagine what fun I had.
By the time, I was done; I looked like swamp thing. All the while, Raja stood
close watching me.
On a serious note, with the
help of another volunteer, we cleaned up his poop and dried leaves. Rolled two
big water tanks down the hill with Mr Ananda to be fixed to his enclosure. Lots
of hard work involved.
Raja's enclosure has plenty of space for him to move around. He has sufficient food and water for consumption. There's much repair to be done and EFP is in need of support and assistance on it.
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| Enclosure |
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| Bird's Eye View of his Enclosure |
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| Water Tanks |
Bath times at the river were
the best; I used coconut husks to scrub him clean. Washing him was no walk in
the park.It was also during this time,
I got to talk to him more, watch him blow bubbles with his trunk. Plus, I got
to cuddle his round tummy tight. Oh!! The joy I felt inside
was indescribable. All I felt from him the whole time was calmness.
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| Hugs from Cuddle Monster |
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| Posing for the Camera |
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| Playing with his Trunk |
There’s also a mischievous
side to Raja! He loves teasing the mahouts, especially Mr. Chirantha. At times,
he does things he’s not supposed to; like wandering away from his usual path,
sneakily pluck jackfruits & eats them when he’s not supposed to. It seems they
give him tummy trouble. There was another time where he ate too much and
couldn’t walk. He just stood there without moving. It was a funny sight to see.
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| Too Full to Walk |
I could go on and on about
Raja; he has touched me in ways I can’t explain. There was no doubt;
I was hooked to this big guy!
My Thoughts on Him
Raja is a calm
gentle giant, well aware of his size and strength. Causing harm to the ones
around him takes mere seconds for him to achieve. But he did nothing of that
sort. He was very well behaved.
I could say it has to do with
his immeasurable faith and trust on the members and volunteers of EFP. He seems
to be aware something good is being done for him. That itself speaks volumes about his
character.
Mahouts
Mr. Gunarathna and Chirantha
are always there with Raja. Given the background they came from – places where
Elephants were used for riding and bull hooks are used. I admire their will to
do the right thing at EFP.
If I was to describe the
Mahouts - Mr Chirantha is generally very happy, smiles a lot. Mr. Gunarathna on the other hand, doesn’t
smile. I was pretty determined to change that!!! I learnt some Sinhalese from Gayan and waited for the right moment. The moment came during Raja’s bath time. I put past his fierceness, plucked all my courage and said:” Oyage nama mokakdha?” It means, what is your name in Sinhalese.
To my utter delight, he broke into a beautiful smile and said “Gunarathna!” Once I knew what a beautiful smile he had. I went all out to make him smile more. It’s the little things that count...J
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| Mr.Chirantha |
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| Gift from Mr.Chirantha |
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| Mr. Gunarathna |
Coordinator
Gayan was an amazing
character. I loved his passion and energy. He constantly made me laugh
throughout my trip. I learnt Elephant language from him and am now fully qualified to speak Elephant ;)
During Raja’s rest period, he helped co-ordinate other
activities to keep us (the volunteers’) occupied. For someone who loathes routine, I found this
approach by EFP brilliant!
Cooking lessons in Devika’s
kitchen was one. I had an opportunity to learn how to cook Sri Lankan dishes.
Their methods were somewhat similar (not 100%!) to my grandmother’s style of
cooking.
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| Devika's Simple Kitchen |
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| Hard At Work |
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| Lunch is Served :) |
On another day, Gayan brought
me to a Sri Lankan school to speak English; not teach! When I arrived at the
school, I was greeted by a roomful of giggling teenagers waiting to show off
their English to me J
They were a happy bunch -
always joking, teasing & full of life!
Just being around them made me alive. Their determination to learn
English amazed me - bright kids with big dreams. I wish all of them best of
luck to a great future.
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| View of the School |
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| My Friends at English Class |
Icing on the cake was having a
taste of Sri Lanka’s street food, and a fast and furious Sri Lankan bus ride
experience. Man, do they drive fast! Gayan indeed made my trip unforgettable!
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| Gayan |
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| Deep In thought |
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| Tina in the middle |
Maximus
Another place I visited was Maximus,
an Elephant Dung Factory. There, I met 62-year-old sweetheart, Mr. Madhialagan.
He gave me a tour of the dung factory and walked me through the process of how
elephant dung was transformed into paper. I told myself I wouldn’t be buying
anything from the factory. All that changed, after I met the sweet Thatha (Grandfather in
Tamil). This sucker melted and had to buy something…J
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| My sweetheart |
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| Souvenir from Maximus |
Simplicity At It’s Best
The people at the Ananda
household led very simple lives. They have the basic necessities a home needs.
I was comfortable throughout my stay at their home.
Life doesn’t stop for them even
with a power cut. I had a ball helping them prepare dinner with torchlights and
candles. Sadly, the lights came on too quickly.
Devika’s cooking was out of
this world. I miss her cooking the most.In a short time, we became
quite close. She likes calling me her Darling! I had to let her taste my home cooking before
I left. So I cooked her a dish; everyone except for Tim got tried it. Pity he
doesn’t take spice!
Mali is lovely to speak with.
She's always smiling. Ammah was the same. Ammah and I had a language barrier,
but that didn’t stop me from conversing with her in sign language. Mr. Ananda
is a happy chipper, mostly joking around and asking me to eat more.
As for Tim…he is a
passionate, dedicated and hardworking man. In short, he’s the project’s
superman! Checks in daily on Gayan and the rest to speak about the day’s
events. What I appreciate about him was he made it a point to come by the house
at least twice a day. Each time, listening to volunteers’ feedback and answering
whatever doubts or questions being raised in relation to Raja. Believe me, he
takes all feedback seriously and action is taken when Raja’s welfare is
concerned. You will get to see it in
person like I did.
In short, everyone treated me
like family and it was difficult when time came to leave.
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| Ammah & Mali |
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| Mr.Ananda |
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| Devika |
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| Shashini |
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| Pweety Bilky |
Farewells Are Never Easy
My goodbyes were tearful
(grown soft over the years J).
Within a short period, I had developed a deep friendship with Raja and members
of EFP. Thus, saying goodbye was tough!
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| Farewell Gift from EFP- Drawing of Sujee & Wasthu |
Sri Lanka
Beautiful country surrounded
by much wildlife and nature. Their people are warm and friendly. A lot of them
were curious about my background and thought I was Sri Lankan. I spent time
explaining I had no relations in India or Sri Lanka. Having said that, I do
wonder at times about it. Maybe there could be a link along the family tree,
which I’m yet to discover ;)
But hey, I’m not complaining,
that attention itself opened many doors to make friends throughout my trip.
What I thought about Sri Lankan
food? Simple, spicy and tasty- reminds me of home. And their tea…. was to die
for!
I didn’t do any sightseeing
throughout my trip and it didn’t matter. My purpose was to spend time with Raja
and it’s what I did! Besides, I have friends here now. It’s all the more a motivation
to come back often.
EFP
Would I recommend volunteering
at the Elephant Freedom Project?
YES YES YES!!!
If you have an undying love
for Elephants and your belief is in sync with EFP. Then, this is the place to
be!
It’s been a dream of mine to
walk freely with Elephants. I've loved them for the longest time. To me they
are all Ganesh and I love him to bits!! I believe my Fat Man led me to the
Elephant Freedom Project.
What RAJA & EFP have done for me?
Through EFP, I got to experience
what its like up-close and personal with an Elephant, in this case Raja. I got to understand their struggles and challenges faced - just to lead a life of freedom.
To describe what I felt in
words doesn’t do justice; you have to be there in person to experience it. Go with an open mind and you will gain much insight. Sounds formidable! But someone
once told me “With no risk, there’s no fun!” So I took it, went with the flow
and what an adventure I had! I’m no longer the same person
I was days ago.
There’s much more to be done
with EFP. Hence, it’s not a Goodbye, but see you later! Next time, I will stay
longer…J
